Which white ink should I use for screen printing?
Well it depends on what result you are looking for BUTTTT we have been lucky enough to recieve 6 different types of white ink from Amex (links below) and we have sampled each one to see the results.
These are the inks we are sampling;
- AMEX EXTRA WHITE WATERBASED INK. Great for small studios who do not have flash/conveyer dryers.
- AMEX FLASH WHITE PLASTISOL INK. Our studio favorite, perfect if you have a flash and tunnel dryer.
- AMEX LOW TEMP PLASTISOL INK. For use on polyester and to help reduce dye-migration.
- AMEX FLEX WHITE. This ink stetches with your garment making it perfect for lycra and spandex.
- AMEX WHITE PRINTYLON. For printing on nylon fabric such as umbrellas and jackets.
- AMEX TEXPRINT VINTAGE WHITE. A waterbased ink which will look aged once it’s been cured.
Don’t forget to check out our video below showing how to use each ink!
THE RESULTS
We have given each white ink a star rating from 1, being not great to 5 being the best fricken ink ever! Star ratings are based on the coverage, softness, ease to sceen print and ease to clean up.
AMEX EXTRA WHITE WATERBASED INK
STAR RATING : ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Pros: We love this ink because it is easy to print with and super simple to clean up with just water and a sponge. In comparison to other waterbased inks on the market, the coverage is really solid, however please note that you will need to do 2 hits to get a nice opaque print.
Cons: We couldnt give this ink 5 stars because (as with most waterbased ink) the speed that it drys on the screen can be problimatic. You MUST WORK FAST and keep your screen flooded at ALL TIMES!
Notes: If you do accidently create a blockage in the mesh from dried in ink, you can use an amazing product by Franmar called ‘Waterbased ink remover’. The link and discount code is below.
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AMEX FLASH WHITE PLASTISOL INK
STAR RATING : ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Pros: You can use this straight from the pot, no additives, no extras, just pure ink from the pot. The coverage is great! You will need to flash inbetween each coat but this is to be expected with any white plastisol ink. We gave this 5 stars for the ease… easy to clean up, easy to print with, easy to cure. It’s softer to touch than most plastisol inks and is stretchy as f*ck after curing.
Cons: With all plastisol ink, you will need to invest in a good flash dryer and converyor oven to fully cure this ink. I would not advise any other curing methods.
Notes: This white ink is our all round fave and we use this ink for most of our standard jobs in the studio. Hence 5 big stars for this beauty!
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AMEX LOW TEMPERATURE PLASTISOL INK
STAR RATING : ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Pros: If you have ever printed onto polyester garments, you will know the struggle of dye-migration! This ink is used as an underbased which can be cured between just 135 – 150 degrees. This is HUGEEE as it allows a standard printing technique without the migration. Wow!
Cons: From our testing we have found that you would need to purchase additional inks to print the top layer to achieve that bright, crispy print. While you could just pile up this ink by printing lots of layers, we think the final outcome would be better if you just used the whole range properly. This could work out to be expensive if you do not print polyesters reguarly.
Notes: While this product is great, we have found another ink in the ‘Spot On’ range which we believe to be a winner when it comes to dye-migration. This product is called ‘anti-migration base’ and we will put a link to it below.
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AMEX FLEX WHITE PLASTISOL INK
STAR RATING : ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Pros: We were so impressed with the stretch in this ink! And with no sign of cracking too! This ink is made to be an underbase and does exactly what it says on the pot. So full points for that!
Cons: The downside to this ink is the opacity. While it is not manufactured to be a solid white (underbase only) we found that the general coverage was a little uneven, hench only giving this product 3 stars.
Notes: For a nice solid print, we would highly reccomend purchasing this ink in a range of colours and ONLY using this white as the underbase which is it’s main purpose. Please dont let the 3 stars put you off! If you want a nice stretchy result, this ink is for you!
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AMEX WHITE PRINTYLON INK
STAR RATING : ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Pros: Holy cow we were impressed by this ink! The result has a solid coverage and cured ink is hard as nails. We have never found an ink this good for Nylon fabrics! The vibrancy is also spot on.
Cons: The clean up is a b*tch.
Notes: This is an air-drying ink so keep your screen flooded and work quickly. If you can stick to these rules I promise you wont be disappointed!
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AMEX TEXPRINT VINTAGE WHITE
STAR RATING : ⭐️ ⭐️
Pros: This is a waterbased ink which means the clean up is super easy and smaller studios without flash dryers and converyer ovens can still use this ink with no problem.
Cons: Cracking this ink for the first time was exciting! Buuut it’s kind of a gimmick. In my opinion the vintage effect looked like I hadn’t cured the ink properly. Maybe some customers want this effect? But not enough for me to invest in a big pot of ink. Sorry!
Notes: This ink is an aquired taste. Some people may gobble this up and put it into every print design. We are just not into it. The performance of this ink does exactly what it says on the tub.
Dont forget to check out our video below showing how to print with these inks including the clean up and printing technique. Video below!
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LINKS
DISCOUNT CODE : CRP5
If you are purchasing anything from the Screen Print World website, use our discount code at the checkout
Ink
Amex white water based ink
Amex flash white plastisol ink
Amex low temperature plastisol ink
Anti-migration base (alternative to low temp)
Amex flex white ink
Amex white printylon ink
Amex printylon retarder
Amex Texprint vintage white
Cleaning products
Franmar water based ink remover
Plastisol remover, Easisolv 701n
Solvent cleaner, Easiway
Discount code for Screen Print World : CRP5
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Check out our video below:
